why do u have an edge??

I was talking to a rec player about poker in general. He plays with the expectation to lose money and he usually does. We got into a coversation about whether poker is beatable (ofc I said poker is beatable as I having been playing semi professionally for a while now), he disagreed. I said "I have an edge on the field therefore I will win in the longrun." He said, "doesnt everyone think they have an edge and will win if they keep playing, its gambling after all, why do u have an edge?"

This got me thinking how do I define my edge and what is the reason that I have an edge.

Defining my edge

This is the easy part. I have many graphs from both online and live poker in both tournaments and cash games through significant sample sizes that show that I am a winning player. The fact that I am winning player means I have an edge on my opponents. This got my thinking about why I have an edge.

Why I have an edge

The first reason I have an edge is I can reasonably assume that I spend more time studying the game that anyone else sitting at my tables. I have also spent more time studying in the past than my anyone at my table. This means I have a stronger theoretical bankground to the game compared to my opponents.

But as everyone knows, studying the game can only get u so far in poker. I have been focusing alot of live poker lately at the relativly low stakes (nl200-500), and I can confidently say that I have more experience playing the game than almost any player that I have played with. I have experienced every situation countless times and know how to react instantly.

Sorry for the tldr, i was curious as to why U feel that u have an edge?

Simply put you are making less mistakes than your opponents and furthermore you can exploit their mistakes. And by mistake I mean any deviation that would be made if you were to play with seeing each other's cards.

You have many tools to help you with that (most of which is based on math) like positional awareness, the ability to estimate certain probabilities, being able to think in hand ranges, etc.

This post has been edited 1 time(s), it was last edited by NightFrostaSS: 27.02.2012 07:02.

I read souls.

Well, it's kinda hard to put the why's into words. For the most part my edge comes from me being capable to notice my opponents exploitable tendencies and adjusting to it faster as well as being able to quickly notice them adjusting to me and re-adjusting to exploit those adjustments again.

There are several edges: Cards -- you play cards that you know are ahead of the ranges of your opponents Position -- you play your cards in position as far as possible Knowledge -- You study the game so that you recognize when you actually have the first two edges Experience -- you play several thousand hands per month, which gives you the ability to recognize places where you can profit. Temperament -- you do not tilt when running bad, nor do you get cocky when running good. Luck -- you are such a luckbox that you hit the flop more often by far than the better players. Health -- you eat well, exercise, and get plenty of sleep, and drink only enough alcohol to ease the jitters

I still don't have enough knowledge and experience to take advantage of the first four, so lean heavily on the last three -- primarily luck and alcohol actually.

Remember: Playing winning poker is like curing acne -- you must pick your spots carefully.

Are you asking if we think we have an edge over the field, what is the edge or why we have an edge over the field?

#1 Do you have an edge over the field?

That one is easy since that is your winrate. In case your winrate in bb is over >0 you have an edge over the field your playing with. So this one is easy to answer and you can answer it in terms of bb/100.

#2 What is an edge

An egde is simply put you making less mistakes then your opponents and thefor win in the long run.

#3 Why do we have the edge?

Well obviously because if you play professional or even semi-professional your spending a lot more time playing/studying then a recreational player who plays 2 hours a week with 0 studying. Its the same in any sport/activity. The more hours you spend on some activity the better you become at it.

You have an edge because your knowledge of the game is better than fishes. IE:

You know when to setmine profitably
Your preflop game is more solid
You do not overvalue you overpairs on bad boards with tons of action
Your bet sizing is better
You are familiar with what tilt is and how to cope with it.
You are self-critical.

All of the above and many, many more makes that edge. In other words, during your life-time poker career your decisions are more optimal than bad players', you make less mistakes and therefore have an edge in skill. Which sooner or later transforms into an edge in a bankroll.

And to answer that topic question directly: you have an edge because either you studied and put more effort into learning OR have more experience.

Originally posted by VorpalF2F
There are several edges: Cards -- you play cards that you know are ahead of the ranges of your opponents Position -- you play your cards in position as far as possible Knowledge -- You study the game so that you recognize when you actually have the first two edges Experience -- you play several thousand hands per month, which gives you the ability to recognize places where you can profit. Temperament -- you do not tilt when running bad, nor do you get cocky when running good. Luck -- you are such a luckbox that you hit the flop more often by far than the better players. Health -- you eat well, exercise, and get plenty of sleep, and drink only enough alcohol to ease the jitters

I still don't have enough knowledge and experience to take advantage of the first four, so lean heavily on the last three -- primarily luck and alcohol actually.

Remember: Playing winning poker is like curing acne -- you must pick your spots carefully.